Crystal lacquer coating and method of making same



Oct. 8, 1935. E H BUCY 2,016,314

CRYSTAL LACQUER COATING AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed 001;. 14, 1933 k \\\W A if m 2 EDMOND H.5UCY,

amt/YW- Patented Oct. 8, 1935 UNITED STATE-S CRYSTAL LACQUER COATING AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Edmond H. Bucy, Waukegan, Ill., assignor to Atlas Powder Company, Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware Application October 14, 1933, Serial No. 693,650

1 Claim.

This invention relates to coatings for all kinds of surfaces and the invention particularly relates to improved surface coatings of the frosted or crystal type, the object of the invention being 5 to provide surfaces presenting frosted or crystalline structures of greater durability and beauty than those heretofore known.

Surface coverings of the crystal lacquer type have been known for a considerable number of years, I have found that crystal lacquer films, for instance, such as made by the processdescribed by Ossian Rosquist in his application, Serial No. 276,799, filed May 10, 1928, entitled Liquid coating composition and film embodying crystalline structuresf, or by the process described by Rieder, German Patent No. 266,265, October 20, 1913, are not resistant enough to friction at those particular spots where the crystalline substance, embodied in such liquid coating compositions, upon the drying of the lacquer separates out in crystalline form and usually is covered with an extremely fine film of lacquer.

It requires extreme care in the application of these liquid coating compositions to obtain smooth surfaces, and the time spent in applying such compositions and in such manner as to obtain smooth surfaces, is very often wasted because the film is not sufiiciently resistant to friction; A very slight scratch is sufficient to mar the beauty of the film, for the scratch bares the crystalline substance and with each wiping new particles of the crystalline substance are broken off and carried along by the wiping cloth so that the surface is soon dulled by the fine particles of the crystalline substance.

It is, therefore, the primary object of this invention to provide a crystal lacquer coating sufilciently resistant in the effects noted, together with a process by which smooth surfaces may be readily obtained in an economical manner.

It is another object of the invention to provide a crystal lacquer coating which may be applied to all objects, particularly those having smooth surfaces, such as glass, metals, paper and any other material, including those of wood, the pores of which have been filled in any of the ways known to the art.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a crystal lacquer coating which may be finished or toned in any color and in which the size of the crystals may be regulated.

It depends on the kind of surface on which the crystal lacquer coating is to be applied as to whether or not the surface should first be provided with a priming or under-coat. Since wood is rather porous, it should be treated first with a priming coat to seal the pores. It is, of course, to be understood that this priming coat can vary considerably as to its composition and color. It

sufiices to say that any priming coat, whether it be an oil, shellac, or lacquer containing either cellulose ester, such as nitro-cellulose, acetylcellulose, or cellulose-ether, such as methylcellulose, ethyl-cellulose, baked enamel, or an aqueous suspension of any pigment filler or 5 similar composition, will be of service, provided it fills the pores of the wood, pasteboardor other surface, in the desired way. Likewise metals may first require a priming coat since various cellulose derivatives, forming the body of the lacquer, may notadhere enough to the blank metal sheet.

If any such priming coat is deemed necessary, any suitable priming coat known to the art, may be applied to the metal surface.

The invention will be fully understood from 15 the following description and from the accompanying drawing, which illustrates a surface provided with my new crystal lacquer coating and in which parts are broken away to fully disclose the individual layers of the coating. 20

Figure 1 discloses the material applied to a wood base and Figure 2 discloses the material applied to a metal base.

Referring to the drawing the numeral l de- 25 notes a priming or under-coat first applied to the surface A. This under-coat, er a plurality of the same, should suitably consist of a composition, which will readily dry and harden, so as not to cause any delay, for which reason I elect cellulose acetate as an example of the many possible materials suitable for this purpose. This coat I may have any desired coloring or toning matter.

Over this priming or under-coat l, I apply a. coating 2 constituting the crystal lacquer com- 35 position which comprises a suitable lacquer base with crystalline compounds dissolved therein. Examples of suitable crystalline compounds are naphthalene, anthracene and other suitable crystalline substances, mostly of organic origin. The following is an example of a composition constituting a crystal lacquer suitable for the purposes stated.

In due time, upon the reduction of the quantity of the solvent by evaporation, the naphthalene 55 crystallizes out and upon the further evaporation of the solvent the crystals of the naphthalene are embedded in the gradually forming film of cellulose ester and of the ester gum. It is, of

course, possible to regulate the size and eventually also the system of the crystals according to desire by varying the quantity of the solvent and the rate of evaporation. The crystal lacquer coat 2, obtained by the aforesaid operations, is not colored or toned, so as not to afiect the beauty of the crystals embedded therein.

It is indeed one of the essential features of my invention that care be taken not to mar in any respect the structure of the crystals and thus detract from the beauty of the same.

In accordance with this intention I next apply over the dry crystal lacquer coat, a stop-off coat 3, comprising an aqueous solution of any adhesive or substance, which upon drying leaves a lustrous skin, or glaze. Such substances are, for instance, animal or vegetable glues, casein and inorganic substances, such as alkali-metal silicates, particularly sodium silicate, and water soluble cellulose ethers, such as methyhcellulcse or ethylreflections are beautifully set cfi against each other; the efiect of this stop-d coat can be compared, so to to the effect accomplished by the oil immersion in microscopic work. No coloring or toning material interferes with their appearance and as the water soluble or stop-01f coat prevents the next following top coat 4 from dissolving away the crystals, the beauty of the 5 crystals is fully preserved.

The top coat 4, or a plurality of the same, may consist of any cellulose lacquer or varnish; the last layer of the coat 4 may be polished or may be left untouched, if desired. Having described my invention, what I claim The herein described method of surface ornamentation which comprises coating an article with a water insoluble lacquer containing a substantially water-insoluble crystalline substance of such nature that upon drying said crystalline substance takes the form of a multiplicity of individual crystals of a determined pattern, applying thereto after drying a stop-off coat of an aqueous material yielding a transparent film, and applying over the last named coating a coating of a non-aqueous material yielding a transparent waterproof top coat, the water insoluble nature of the lacquer, the aqueous nature of the stop-ofi coat, and the non-aqueous nature of the top coat rendering the lacquer coat insoluble in the stopoii coat and rendering the stop-oil? coat insoluble in the top coat.

EDMOND H. BUCY. 

